REVIEW : MARY SKELTER 2 (PC)
In a bizarre dungeon-crawler that will throw horrific tasks to the player as they strive to find the truths behind what the Jail actually is, Mary Skelter 2 introduces a new plot into this setting of suffering and despair. Mary Skelter 2 is a mystery for those who have played the original game on Vita, and it welcomes those who haven’t to enjoy both the first and second titles in one convenient package.
Play as Blood Maidens, fairy tale-inspired characters with deeply customizable character-specific classes, in this first-person dungeon crawler. In turn-based battles with a blood-fueled metamorphosis system, strike a balance between power and madness, and escape a living prison while indestructible Nightmares pursue you in real time.
In this eerie dungeon-crawler, players should expect to spend a lot of time fighting. The main character Otsuu and her Blood Maidens are attempting to escape the Jail, while enemies known as Marchens wander the streets abusing humanity and posing a threat to the party’s progress. When the girls are splattered with Marchen blood, their blood metres progressively fill up. When this metre reaches zero, each Maiden enters massacre mode, receiving additional abilities such as new elemental attacks. Dungeon crawling, on the other hand, is stressful, and the girls will become increasingly corrupted with time.
When a party member’s blood metre reaches its maximum level of corruption, they may transform into a new form: Blood Skelter. The girls lose most of their garments and cause massive quantities of damage in this mode, but they are unable to distinguish between friends and foes. Only Jack, the game’s sole male character, can restore the girls’ sanity; however, his calming influence comes at a cost, as Jack’s mental state is fragile, and leaning on him too much will trigger Ripper Jack mode.
The ladies must keep a watch out for a variety of traps and gimmicks as the group explores the dungeon, as well as a scary foe: when white clouds form, a Nightmare is nearby. Nightmares come in all shapes and sizes.If a Nightmare detects the group, a chase ensues, with players. The goal is to go far enough away from the Nightmare that it loses interest, granting an item reward in addition to the survival prize. There is a regional core at the end of each part of the Jail, and destroying it will reduce the area’s Nightmare and prevent it from regenerating. Nightmares, on the other hand, are exceedingly terrifying before the destruction of each region’s core, with severe attacks that may easily wipe a group already worn down by random encounters.
Every adversary, including bosses and Nightmares, is linked to a particular element, and exploiting their flaws is critical to victory. Players may also employ the new feature to continuously strike the same adversary, turning them backwards and causing them to incur extra damage, particularly after critical blows. With equipment and skills that can raise or decrease the number of adversaries the group will confront, the encounter rate is properly balanced. It’s critical to make full use of all of these mechanics in order to defeat increasingly difficult adversaries.
There are ten characters to recruit, five of which are members of the active party and the other five are support characters. Blood Maidens collect CP when they level up, which can be used to purchase additional class skills. The party is no longer reliant on specific character combinations, as each character has five classes to unlock, which overlap amongst the girls.
Blood Devolution allows a party member’s level to be reduced while keeping a portion of their CP. This is useful for those looking to maximise their party’s power. This allows for more CP to be earned when the girl regains lost levels and unlocks new skills. Not that it’s necessary, but this high amount of customisation opens up a lot of possibilities in terms of strategy, whereas the earlier Vita game had some rather tight rules for who had to be in the group.
The game’s difficulty level can be adjusted in a number of ways. The first are the levels of difficulty: Reduces enemy stats quickly and keeps the mini-map visible at all times; When being hunted by a monster, the game’s default mode removes the mini-map; When the party is being pursued by each region’s Nightmare, Hard boosts each enemy’s stats and disables the mini-map. Losing the mini-map is a difficult problem because each dungeon is full of irritating trap mechanics known as Gimmicks, ranging from flamethrowers to gaps in the floor and more. The new Jail Trial system allows players to configure alternative punishments and boons, allowing them to adjust the difficulty level even further. These can range from taking more damage in exchange for more drops to lowering some stats in order to boost others; depending on how the player organises their party, which of these trials can assist them strengthen their roles will vary dramatically.
The party relaxes in the newly liberated district while they are not exploring the vast jail dungeon. Each Blood Maiden has her own room, which Otsuu can furnish with gifts and decorative things. Raising a girl’s attachment level reveals information about their Blood Libido (personality quirks that determine their motivations throughout the storey), as well as increasing the amount of attacks unlocked during the massacre. Quests can be completed by the party, such as killing specified monsters or travelling to a specific place.
Mary Skelter 2’s storey is vastly improved over the first game, with numerous new occurrences both inside and outside the dungeon. It’s not only better than the original game, but it’s also a fantastic plot that stands on its own and gives each Maiden the depth they require. Each character is named by or inspired by a classic fairy tale; Little Mermaid, Rapunzel, Thumbelina, and other characters will be known to many gamers, while Princess Kaguya, Hameln, and Otsuu may be less so to a western audience. Each female has her unique personality, and thanks to the game’s wide cast and canon love interest, players can follow any character’s tale without altering the game’s conclusion.
However, due to the lack of voice acting, the game’s music and sound effects sparkle, so not all is lost. Jazzy pop tracks, reminiscent of the Persona series, keep players on their toes while tapping their toes, and seeing each Maiden stumble through some hilariously awkward scenes with just the right music playing in the background helps support the storytelling. While the graphics may not be anything to write home about, the performance is much better. Performance is flawless on the PC, with no issues appearing in docked or handheld mode.
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